Have you ever wondered why God so often refers to Himself as our Father?
Isn’t it amazing? The Almighty God of the universe, the infinite Being, the Holy One, chooses to relate Himself to us in an intimate and tender way – like a father would to a beloved child.
While each one of us has had varied experiences with our own earthly fathers – some beautiful and sweet, some difficult and hard, some a unique and intricate blend of both – all of us were, on some level, created to know and long for the safety, security and love that only a father can offer.
And that’s exactly what God provides, in its fullest possible expression.
Through the work of the Son on our behalf and through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, the Father – the figurehead of the Trinity – adopts us into His family and gives us the right to be called His children (John 1:12).
In that adoption, there is a shift: our old self for the new.
Our new identity is no longer as those outside of the family, but as dearly loved sons and daughters. We are brought in to live under the provision and protection of a tender but strong, gentle but mighty, big but near-and-present Father. This is our new identity in the family of God – one of healing, joy, belonging, courage and worth.
Understanding Whose we are
Zawadi Morrow, CAFO’s Artist in Residence, describes this well in the devotional paired with the newly released song What a Father’s Like, developed in collaboration between CAFO and The Worship Initiative.
To fully understand who we are, we must understand Whose we are. By faith in Jesus, we become children of God (Galatians 3:26). God gives us His Spirit and we become His adopted sons and daughters. In that moment, our identity is gifted to us by our Heavenly Father, who invites us to cry out to Him, saying, “Abba Father!” We are no longer lost or struggling for a sense of belonging. Instead, we are part of the family of God, who faithfully demonstrates true fatherhood.
Have you ever noticed your child copying you? Maybe it’s a phrase you use or a quirky mannerism. One of the primary ways a child learns early in life is through imitation – especially of their parents.
The same is true of us as God’s children.
We are called to grow in His likeness as we look to Him to model our thoughts and actions (Ephesians 5:1). As we follow closely in the footsteps of our Father, we are being formed increasingly into the image of His Son – from “glory to glory” (2 Corinthians 3:18).
Zawadi wrote that to fully understand who we are, we must understand Whose we are. Adding to that, in order to understand who we want to become, it’s necessary to understand who we’re imitating. Our ability to grow more like our Father will ultimately be in direct proportion to our deepening understanding of His true character.
So, what does the Bible say about God’s character?
Frankly, it says quite a bit. Yet among the most prominent themes running throughout Scripture is this – God cares deeply for the most vulnerable.
God’s heart for the vulnerable
Throughout the Bible, we see God’s countercultural love and care for those society tends to push aside. He engaged, empowered and elevated women (Deuteronomy 24:19; John 4:4-30; John 20:11-18), dignified the racially marginalized (Luke 10:25-37), commanded His people to care for the impoverished (Proverbs 19:17) and reached out His hand to the sick and lowly (Luke 5:12-13).
Consistently, the character of God is revealed in how He loves the most vulnerable. So, His assuming the role of Father to the fatherless is simply a continuation of who He always is and what He always does.
Psalm 68:5-6 says it clearly: “A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in His holy dwelling. God sets the lonely in families…”
God as Father satisfies fully the safety, security and provision our souls most desperately long for. We were once outside of the family, but now we are children of God.
This leads us to the familiar passage in James 1:27 and helps us understand to a greater degree the place it’s coming from: “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.”
It’s as if James is saying Listen. At the end of the day, God is primarily concerned not with what we do but with who we are becoming. Our goal is to become more formed into the image of our Father. To be as He is and do as He does. And one of the purest and most undefiled ways we do that is by caring for the vulnerable in their distress.
This is why we do what we do – first, because of what a loving Father has done for us. Second, to reflect the image of our Father into the world around us. It takes us to places we never thought we’d go and to experiences we never thought we’d have. But our good, gracious and loving Father will go before us, walk beside us and be our guard behind us as we seek to increasingly reflect His character into a world that so desperately needs it.
What a Father’s Like
As you reflect on the character of our Father, we would love for you to check out “Father to the Fatherless”, the newly released EP from CAFO and The Worship Initiative. These three songs were written to remind you of how the Lord has brought you into His family and to help you reflect His love in your families, your church, your community and throughout the world.
Each song comes with a chord chart, video tutorials, a devotional and other resources. These were designed to equip worship leaders to engage their congregations’ hearts for the vulnerable and are incredible resources for Pure Religion Sunday on Nov. 10.
Learn more about Pure Religion Sunday and access these resources at https://cafo.org/purereligion/pure-religion-sunday/.
